Home › Appliances › Security camera
How much does it cost to run a security camera?
At the U.S. average residential price of 18.31¢ per kilowatt-hour (July 2026), running a security camera costs about $8.02 a year. Your own bill depends on your state's rate, which ranges from 12.72¢ to 48.00¢ across the country.
- Per hour
- under 0.1¢
- Per day of use
- 2.2¢
- Per month
- 66.8¢
- Per year
- $8.02
Assumption: 5 W, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year — 44 kWh a year. Per wired camera, including night-vision illuminators averaged over a day.
Cost by state
Same appliance, same usage, 51 different prices. Sorted cheapest first.
| State | Rate | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana | 12.72¢ | 46.4¢ | $5.57 |
| Nevada | 12.77¢ | 46.6¢ | $5.59 |
| Utah | 13.12¢ | 47.9¢ | $5.75 |
| North Dakota | 13.41¢ | 48.9¢ | $5.87 |
| Tennessee | 13.71¢ | 50.0¢ | $6.00 |
| Idaho | 13.73¢ | 50.1¢ | $6.01 |
| Nebraska | 13.78¢ | 50.3¢ | $6.04 |
| Kentucky | 13.81¢ | 50.4¢ | $6.05 |
| Arkansas | 14.33¢ | 52.3¢ | $6.28 |
| Oklahoma | 14.35¢ | 52.4¢ | $6.29 |
| Wyoming | 14.36¢ | 52.4¢ | $6.29 |
| Mississippi | 14.54¢ | 53.1¢ | $6.37 |
| Washington | 14.71¢ | 53.7¢ | $6.44 |
| Montana | 14.99¢ | 54.7¢ | $6.57 |
| Florida | 15.03¢ | 54.9¢ | $6.58 |
| North Carolina | 15.16¢ | 55.3¢ | $6.64 |
| Kansas | 15.27¢ | 55.7¢ | $6.69 |
| South Dakota | 15.37¢ | 56.1¢ | $6.73 |
| Arizona | 15.38¢ | 56.1¢ | $6.74 |
| South Carolina | 15.47¢ | 56.5¢ | $6.78 |
| West Virginia | 15.78¢ | 57.6¢ | $6.91 |
| Texas | 15.88¢ | 58.0¢ | $6.96 |
| Oregon | 15.97¢ | 58.3¢ | $6.99 |
| Iowa | 15.99¢ | 58.4¢ | $7.00 |
| Missouri | 16.09¢ | 58.7¢ | $7.05 |
| New Mexico | 16.09¢ | 58.7¢ | $7.05 |
| Georgia | 16.27¢ | 59.4¢ | $7.13 |
| Alabama | 16.40¢ | 59.9¢ | $7.18 |
| Indiana | 16.73¢ | 61.1¢ | $7.33 |
| Colorado | 17.00¢ | 62.0¢ | $7.45 |
| Minnesota | 17.45¢ | 63.7¢ | $7.64 |
| Virginia | 17.55¢ | 64.1¢ | $7.69 |
| Delaware | 18.48¢ | 67.5¢ | $8.09 |
| Wisconsin | 19.06¢ | 69.6¢ | $8.35 |
| Illinois | 19.22¢ | 70.2¢ | $8.42 |
| Ohio | 19.45¢ | 71.0¢ | $8.52 |
| Maryland | 21.41¢ | 78.1¢ | $9.38 |
| Pennsylvania | 21.72¢ | 79.3¢ | $9.51 |
| Michigan | 23.05¢ | 84.1¢ | $10.10 |
| Vermont | 23.75¢ | 86.7¢ | $10.40 |
| Connecticut | 24.16¢ | 88.2¢ | $10.58 |
| New Jersey | 25.19¢ | 91.9¢ | $11.03 |
| District of Columbia | 25.21¢ | 92.0¢ | $11.04 |
| New Hampshire | 26.60¢ | 97.1¢ | $11.65 |
| Rhode Island | 28.29¢ | $1.03 | $12.39 |
| Alaska | 28.83¢ | $1.05 | $12.63 |
| New York | 29.90¢ | $1.09 | $13.10 |
| Massachusetts | 30.49¢ | $1.11 | $13.35 |
| Maine | 32.41¢ | $1.18 | $14.20 |
| California | 33.61¢ | $1.23 | $14.72 |
| Hawaii | 48.00¢ | $1.75 | $21.02 |
Cutting the number down
- Individually trivial, collectively real: eight cameras around the clock is an always-on load worth knowing about.
Questions
- How many watts does a security camera use?
- About 5 W while running.
- How much does a security camera cost per month?
- About 66.8¢ a month at the U.S. average rate, or $8.02 a year.
- Where is it cheapest to run?
- Louisiana, at $5.57 a year, versus $21.02 in Hawaii — a spread of $15.45.